Kicking and Screaming: A Memoir of Madness and Martial Arts

Melanie Gibson was an independent woman with a good job, multiple college degrees, and a condo in the trendy part of town. She also had a few mental illnesses, a minor substance abuse problem, and rotten relationship skills. She was a high-functioning crazy who needed a good kick in the pants, literally and metaphorically.

In early 2013, as a last desperate means to save her sanity, Melanie turned to a nearly forgotten childhood activity: the Korean martial art of taekwondo. As if the universe were listening, she discovered her West Texas childhood taekwondo instructors' Grandmaster operated a taekwondo school a few miles from her home in Fort Worth, Texas--and she decided to start her training over as a white belt.

In taekwondo, Melanie felt like she had a fresh start in more ways than one. She found an inner peace she'd never known before, a sense of community, a newfound confidence, and a positive outlook on life. The kicking and screaming she was doing in class quieted the long-term kicking and screaming in her mind. Funny and frank, Kicking and Screaming: A Memoir of Madness and Marital Arts is the story of Melanie's life-changing journey from troubled, lost soul to confident taekwondo black belt.

Author: Melanie D. Gibson
Publisher: She Writes Press
Published: 04/20/2021
Pages: 280
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 0.79lbs
Size: 8.40h x 5.40w x 1.00d
ISBN: 9781647420284

Review Citation(s):
Kirkus Reviews 03/15/2021